Small Paw Print, Big Impact

My family never had pets in the house for the first seven to eight years of my life. My Grandma is terrified as she was bit by a large Rottweiler when she was in her forties, my mom inherited that fear for years. As for me, I wasn't ever around any dogs growing up that I can remember. However I do vaguely remember when I first encountered fear from a dog. Believe it or not it was Halloween, we knocked on someone's door and without warning two big olé mighty pugs then rapidly charged toward me and my brother. I know what your thinking, pugs, really. As they are not the most threatening of animals let alone dogs.

From that point my mom didn't want to instill the same fear she had experienced onto her children, thus we introduced our first dog into our family, Griffin. This was the time when the first Harry Potter Movie came out, the one where they unveiled Voldemort's double face. As any seven year old we sided with the protagonist in the movie and their house, thus we name our beautiful baby shelty, Griffin.

Now this isn't a story of who Griffin was as my first family dog to me! Because although I loved him and even when I was younger claimed to have married him, back yard ceremony and all, he was a part of what brought me to my who I considered my dog, Prince Cinnamon Boots. And yes before you say anything, I named him that.

I remember it so clearly, probably because I got him as a consolation prize of my mom losing my birth certificate preventing me from playing All Star Summer Softball, the biggest of deals as pre-teen. So instead, she prompted that we road trip to California from Oregon because her friend just had a litter of Yorkshire Terriers, and we could get one. The reason Prince qualified as my dog, was because I invested a whole $200 into him, which for a preteen who pretty much had money from birthdays and household chores, that was my life savings. Unknowingly she also chipped in for the rest of the amount, but that remained a secret for years.

As Griffin was my husband, it only made sense that we adopted Prince as our son, and I have never had a kid, but I have never loved anyone like I loved him, well before I fell in love with an actual human. Nonetheless, my love for him has outlasted any of the other relationships.

Prince Cinnamon Boots' name was decided outside a gas station in California when it was 105 degrees out. Is that relevant to this story no, but I can still remember stepping out of that car and swearing because it was so hot and humid.

Prince and I learned to do everything together, He was my confidante, distraction from my procrastination and basically my sanity all through high school. I read Shakespeare to him as if I was all the characters while learning it in literature, he listened to all the audio books I listened to for school, I was always favorited because I fed him left over hot dogs from work. That was all fun in games until he shaped into a toaster, then we had to cut back on those. I dressed him us as a bumblebee for Halloween and for almost everyday of his life. I saved him from being swept up by a stream current, I swam in the pool as he boogie boarded nervously on it. He was at all of my softball practices, the best friend to all of my friends. And especially the only boy I would cry to and the get bed snuggles with.

When I first went off to college, my life shifted, my priorities changed and suddenly I was hundreds of miles away from him. I learned to adapt with not having him around, but I defiantly felt the absence. My second year of college, my best friend at University contracted bacterial meningitis and within the first week and a half of the semester she passed away. I had never experienced a death of someone so close to me, where I grieved the loss, but also grieved the what could have been. In that time my mom came and aided me through the semester and brought my furry friend with her. In the time that she was gone from another excursion, he was my faithful companion, once again.

Taking care of a dog in college was no joke! Between my full credit load and leaving him nearly locked in a room for seven hours straight, I had to get creative. One of the day's I was busy the whole day from classes, to clubs, I wouldn't have been able to get home and take care of him, so, I snuck him into my classes with me. I had him either sit behind my seat during class or on my lap. He was a trusted ally and complied very well. I did get caught by two teachers, but luckily was graced by his cuteness lightening the lecture. That same night we walked all over campus and went to a free movie that was playing. I just wrapped him in a blanket as I walked in and sat him on my lap the whole movie. He lasted almost the whole movie before getting antsy, and the the girl next to me didn't even notice until he sneezed.

While he was with me at University our bond grew stronger, especially when I was in full responsibility as of him. He has always been my dog, but when an animal relies on you for everything, it becomes more meaningful.

He really had an impact on me. The last few years he started becoming blind due to him getting diabetes. Diabetes is typical in older Yorkies, but I a still convinced it had something to do with all the hot dogs we fed him over the years. I preface this by saying, Prince had so much adversity to him. When he started going blind you could see the fear in him. He had lost one of his senses that guided him through out his life. At first he wouldn't go outside, and every step was fear driven. I was so worried that that was going to be it. But He pulled through. Prince learned how to navigate our house with only ending in the pool once or twice. He learned how to adapt on road trips and to be comfortable within what he wasn't able to see. We always said we would let life end for him if he wasn't happy anymore. But honestly he was happy up until his very last walk of life.

There was this dirt road that lead to a large oak tree down by the river. it was a half a mile from my house down and a half of a mile back. This walk has become the official dog walking spot in our little neighborhood, because of Prince. My Mom and I would always take prince on that walk, rain or shine. Sadly in Oregon there were more rainy days and they sucked, but the sunny days are where the memories remain. Prince thrived on that walk, blind and all. He pranced down sniffing everything and wondering where ever he wanted to go. Then when we made it to the tree and he knew it was time to go back, he clicked into another gear and nearly ran home because he knew that's where dinner was.

I always feared the day I would have to say goodbye, because I didn't know how to. I always thought I was going to be away from home when it happened, but I am so thankful that I wasn't. There came a day, where he decided he was done, he stopped eating and drinking, he would only sleep and his diabetes was declining rapidly. Neither my mom or I wanted to acknowledge our end of life plan. We wanted to just let it happen naturally. But ultimately the morning of, we decided we didn't want him to die from starving to death, he deserved better. That morning we made the appointment for the afternoon, my mom and I took him on one last walk to the oak tree. At this time he hadn't moved in days, and if he did he would fall over from malnutrition.

However, those last few hours we walked him down to the tree. We wrapped him in a blue poka dot blanket and assured him that we were going on a walk. We made it a quarter of the way down the path before he was fighting being in our arms. we let him down, and in that moment he decided he was going to walk the rest of the way home. He did not only walk, but he pranced as if he was okay. We so wanted to believe he would be okay. But he wasn't. He mustered up the whole 10 pounds of energy he had and completed his final walk on his own. Still writing this today beings a tear to my eye from how amazing and sad that moment was.

Shortly after, his body knew it was done. He started seizing once every 10 minutes, till it turned into a constant seizure. I rushed him to the vet as they took his crippling body from my arms as I sobbed. He lived his best life and his little cinnamon boots made the biggest impact on my life. I could never pick one specific memory to showcase, because his life was the best show of my life. Prince Cinnamon Boots is missed everyday, but his imprint made a lasting impression on my life and who I am.